The basketball Bows did alomst everything they could to defeat Illinois last night, but missed freethrows and turnovers converted into points contributed to a last second heartbreaking loss.

There is much good news coming out of this effort. The team played hard and together, and the frontline dominated this Big Ten team. Spearman made good on his desire to let Ill know they made a mistake when they didnt recruit him with a 20 point, 9 rebound effort, many of the buckets coming on dribble drives to the basket ( the one shot he missed, however, a dunk late in the game, will stay with him for a while).

Vander was Vander. Dominating the inside, he scored 22 points and had 11 rebounds. he could not be stopped. And the 14 foot turn around jump shot that sent the game into overtime will join the ranks of last second shots by UH that fans will long remember.

Speaking of the fans, 7500 of them watched a great college basketball game. The students continue to show up, and the place was rocking.

The game did expose some continuing issues in the backcourt, however, The athletic and very quick Ill guards constantly blew by the defense and either scored on layups or were fouled. After missing a ton of threes early, Ill made the big threes down the stretch and in overtime as the Bows perimieter defense was exposed. Turnovers converted into points ( 16 into 21 points), and missed freethrows down the stretch ( 17-31) ultimately dooomed the home team.

But what we learned is that edition of the basketball team is exciting and talented. They will be a force in the Big West. The frontcourt is as good as advertised. The backcourt remains an issue, but for the most part, Tavita ran the offense competently with 7 assists ( however 5 turnovers). One thing is pretty clear on the negative side, however. There is no solid backup point guard and on nights when Jace gets into foul trouble, as he did last night, the team will struggle.

But all in all, a great effort by the basketball Bows. They showed the basketball world that could stay with, and probably should have beaten, a Big Ten Team. Illinois will not win their Conference, but they are a solid team with a few very good players. and UH stood toe to toe with them for 44 minutes and 58 seconds. Way to go Bows

Jeff Portnoy is a member of the UH Board of Regents. The views expressed here are his and do not reflect those of the board.

without a point that can handle the rock and also score some points the Bows might be in a situation like last year. Teams will double and triple team Joaquim because they know that Tavita cant score. Hell a point that cannot shoot free throws and a bunch of turnovers to boot. Lastly 7.6 secondds left and he doesnt put anyone on the inbounder. Problems for the inbounding team increases when they have to look for a team mate to get the ball too. To let the illinois player to go down free with know pressure was I believe poor coaching

agree that spearman could be the backup at point. showed he could dribble and score, but gib is looking foir a pass first pg. however, down the stretch in close games, Tavita has shown he is a poor free throw shooter. also a problem with vander from the line. as far as defending the inbound pass, coaches disagree on whether to defend or keep the extra man back to stop the break. as it is, Ill able to penetrate on the last posession, but UH defended the paint well, but forgot about the man standing wide open in the corner. someody missed their assignment.

The Illinois game wast he first time and I saw the Bows this year. They surprised me in that they are better than I expected. Many of the players like Spearmen, Fotu and Shamburger (excuse the spelling) seem to have a high basketball IQ. They are a good passing team and understand where the open areas are. They are weak at the point.

is there anyone on the football team that could possibly play point? it would suck if this season was a disappointment because of their lack of a backup point guard. Clair has promise, but his body is not yet ready for the kind of athleticism he faced against Illinois.